Bike Cleaner

[Wheatmaster]

My cousin gave me his old road bike because he got a newer one. It's a bit "old looking" and i was wondering if you guys knew of a spray or something that could give the bike back its shine?

 

[DaiShan]

I use simple green spray, it foams up, and gets in all of the nooks and crannies, just be sure to re-grease the chain with bike grease and avoid spraying the bottom bracket. There are some bike gurus on this board, maybe they'll chime in with more complete advice 😀

 

[MichaelD]

Is the paint faded, or is it just dirty? Maybe you should give it a good wash and see what it looks like? Spray painting on top of dirt is not the ideal way to a nifty new finish.

 

[Ornery]

It's no different than a car. Cheap auto polish smothered all over it, then wiped off. You should be able to make it 90% as clean as you desire inside of 20 minutes.

 

[everman]

You should clean the chain and all the other mechanical workings. Maybe take it to a shop for a tune-up.

 

[Ornery]

This gave me an idea. Clean the chain up with kerosene, and don't worry about splashing it all over. Spray the kerosene on all moving parts. Matter of fact, wipe the whole thing down liberally with kerosene. Later wash the whole bike with one cup of kerosene added to the wash water. Wipe well with a soft cloth -- no rinsing is necessary. This will prevent rust and water will actually bead on the [car] during a rainfall. Put some clean oil on the chain and other moving parts after that.

 

[Wheatmaster]

Originally posted by: Ornery
It's no different than a car. Cheap auto polish smothered all over it, then wiped off. You should be able to make it 90% as clean as you desire inside of 20 minutes.

so you're saying i can just wax the darn thing?

 

[Ornery]

Not wax, polish. Use any cheap polish after you hose it off. Hell, use the kerosene method above. It's quicker and will also clean the mechanisms.